Surgery's Scars Go Beyond Surface

After Their Faces Were Damaged, Two Women Warn Others To Be Careful When Choosing A Plastic Surgeon.

June 22, 1997|By Ludmilla Lelis of The Sentinel Staff

DAYTONA BEACH — Anne McGan just wishes she could smile.

Hardened scars from a botched medical procedure have taken away her grin permanently, no matter how happy she is.

''I don't have the same mouth I had before. I have this shrunken bird mouth,'' she said. ''I think I look really weird. I don't look like me.''

McGan of Daytona Beach and Patricia McDonald of Port Orange have struggled for more than a year since laser resurfacing left their skin burned and their muscles rigid and tight.

For the past 15 months, it has been difficult to eat, painful to talk and impossible to smile. They have become self-conscious and ashamed. Ongoing corrective treatment by other doctors has brought them more facial movement and an improved appearance, but the damage is permanent.

Last month, the pair received settlements worth tens of thousands of dollars after filing medical malpractice claims with insurance carriers against plastic surgeon Dr. Madhu Parikh of Ormond Beach.

They also have filed complaints with the state Agency for Health Care Administration, which investigates such complaints and forwards its findings and recommendations to the Florida Board of Medicine for final action.

The state Agency for Health Care Administration can't discuss the status of the women's complaints, spokeswoman Colleen David said. All she would say is that the agency's medical probable-cause panel hadn't taken public action against Parikh as of the end of last week.

Contacted in person last week at his office at 598 Sterthaus Ave., Parikh would not comment. His office, however, provided this statement: ''Dr. Parikh has been practicing in the Volusia County area for 21 years. It is his policy not to publicly comment on patients and their care.''

State and circuit court records show there are three lawsuits and 17 closed malpractice claims against Parikh and that he has paid settlements totaling more than $400,000 in 20-plus years of private practice in Florida.

Records show that among the 17 malpractice claims are cases involving breast surgeries, skin cancer, severe scarring from a face lift and hand surgery.

Parikh has two letters of guidance in his file from the Board of Medicine. Those are cases in which there was evidence he violated state law, and the board decided no further disciplinary action would be taken.

When they first went to his office, McGan and McDonald were not aware of Parikh's record with state agencies governing the medical profession.

Now, both women said they want to warn patients to double-check any doctor's record and find out about a physician's background before undergoing procedures.

Still fit and trim - and proud of it - McGan and McDonald said they were both active before their surgery. McDonald enjoyed golfing several days a week and fell in love with cycling.

They tried to protect their fair skin over the years, but the Florida sun took its toll, leaving fine lines and other damage. Drawn by heavy local advertising, each called Parikh in March 1996.

McDonald said a television show sparked her interest in laser resurfacing, in which a carbon dioxide laser vaporizes layers of damaged or wrinkled skin.

''In my own mind, I was satisfied he could do this,'' McDonald said.

However, she recalled that her consultation was brief. She contends the release she signed didn't say burning was a possible risk associated with the new technology.

''He never explained what exactly he would do,'' she said.

McGan was struck by how crowded Parikh's waiting room was during her visits.

''All his ads and the people in his office - with all these people, I figured he's got to be great,'' McGan said.

She scheduled her resurfacing appointment quickly, hoping her face would heal before a May 1996 bike tournament she wanted to attend.

They each went to Parikh's office in March 1996 for the same procedure, which cost a few thousand dollars. They were given local anesthesia.

McGan said the first thing she remembered was getting rushed out of the surgical suite: ''They said to me: 'You've got to open your eyes. We need the operation room for another patient.' But it wasn't as if I was purposely keeping them shut.''

A couple of weeks later, the muscles in their chins and around their mouths began to harden and swell. Their skin became shiny and red. In time, opening and closing the mouth became difficult.

After the scars became progressively worse, the women filed their complaints with Parikh's insurance carrier and the state and started undergoing treatment elsewhere, including steroid injections and corrective surgery.

Dr. James Baker, a Winter Park plastic surgeon and past president of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, didn't examine the women but said third-degree burns are a known complication of the procedure.